LONDON: The UK government on Monday insisted that Rwanda is an appropriate place to deport failed asylum seekers, as it tried to overturn a court ruling that the policy is unlawful.
Three appeal court judges in London blocked the controversial plan in June, assessing that the African nation could not be considered a safe, third country.
At the start of a three-day hearing at the Supreme Court on Monday, lawyer James Eadie, representing the interior ministry, conceded that Rwanda was "a country less attractive" than the UK.
But he told a panel of five judges in the country's highest court that it was "nevertheless safe".
Both London and Kigali were "committed" to ensuring the deal they signed would work, and assurances had been given about how the scheme would work in practice, he added.
The Rwanda deportation policy, which has outraged human rights campaigners and groups representing asylum seekers, is at the heart of a UK government drive to cut migrant numbers.
Migration is likely to be a major issue on the doorstep as campaigning gets under way for a general election expected next year.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his ruling Conservative government have been under sustained pressure to stop so-called "small boats" crossings of migrants from northern France, and tackle a record backlog of asylum claims.
Eadie told the judges in central London that the government placed "considerable importance" on the policy, and there was a "serious and pressing need" to introduce it as a deterrent to the Channel crossings.
It has become an embarrassment for a pro-Brexit government that promised to "take back control" of the country's borders after leaving the European Union.
The Rwanda deal was signed under Conservative former prime minister Boris Johnson but the first removal flights were successfully blocked in June last year by legal challenges.
The Home Office is understood to be aiming for February 2024 for the first deportation flight to "send a signal" to people smuggling gangs that crossing via the Channel will likely lead to removal.
Britain's main opposition Labour party, which is well ahead of the Conservatives in the polls, said it would drop the Rwanda plan if it was elected.
Party leader Keir Starmer said Labour would not pursue the "hugely expensive" and "wrong" scheme even if the Supreme Court ruled in the government's favour. — AFP
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